Organised by: Sarah Hall (University of Nottingham) and Dariusz Wójcik (University of Oxford) sponsored by Geoforum and the Global Network on Financial Geography

Friday, 7 April, 3:20-5:00pm

The outcome of the UK’s EU referendum caught the City of London by surprise. HSBC debated whether not to move their headquarters to Hong Kong, and decided to stay in London only a few months before the referendum. The share prices of British banks tumbled on the news of the vote, as did the British Pound. As of September 2016, however, despite many warnings, no major international financial institution voted with their feet and moved out a significant part of their UK operations. The terms on which the UK is to leave the EU, including the future relationship of the UK with the Union’s single financial market, remain unknown.

The objective of this panel discussion is to evaluate the impact of Brexit on: (i) the City of London; (ii) the European and global landscape of financial centres and power; and (iii) the remit of financial geography in general. How could different Brexit options affect the access of UK-based financial firms to EU markets? If London is to lose from Brexit, which financial centres in Europe and beyond, if any, could benefit? How will Brexit affect the process of European financial integration? What does Brexit mean for the future of financial globalization and financialisation? How could Brexit change the relationship between London and the rest of the UK? What are the implications of this for research frontiers in economic and financial geography? The panel will address these and other questions posed by this momentous event.